dkirschner's DotA 2 (PC)

[September 17, 2013 11:46:48 AM]

Figured I'd try this since it's free and I know a lot of people who play. It's very similar to the original, and seems very similar to the other MOBA games like League of Legends. Unfortunately, and to preface this, I don't care about that whole genre. I don't find the games fun.

The biggest reason I don't find MOBA games fun is because they are tough to master, and when you play online, it seems like everyone but you is a master. And, they like to let you know it. So I was always turned off by my relatively low skill level, by the perceived hostility of other players, and also because the games often felt like long turtle matches, playing tug-of-war in the middle of the map for 45 minutes.

It's clear that these (the first two at least) were things the devs wanted to address because there is now a pretty good tutorial. I was able to feel somewhat comfortable with a couple characters. The tutorial matches start simple with little scenarios. You learn how to purchase items at the shop, learn about recommended builds, the basic character roles, creeps, lanes, towers, pack mule, etc etc. You also learn some tactics like getting the last hit. It escalates to regular matches against the AI. And if I recall there is some sort of peer help system in place or peer ranking system, although I might be making this up.

BUT, the 45-minute tug-of-war is still there and that kills me. As someone who isn't playing the game competitively, I find it boring because I don't care about the minute details of what is happening in the melee. However, I see that there is a lot going on, and it is interesting, that one could become absorbed in watching or playing. I'm one of those people who occasionally watches DotA and Starcraft matches online even though I don't play either game. It's fascinating to me to hear these games being cast and to try and figure out the little micro interactions going on from each player's perspective. Even though I don't enjoy playing the game, I still appreciate it and enjoy watching a match every now and then. This is something that I *could* become involved with. Perhaps the biggest barrier to my enjoyment isn't the things I listed above, but my unwillingness to commit to spending sufficient time.
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dkirschner's DotA 2 (PC)

Current Status: Stopped playing - Got Bored

GameLog started on: Thursday 22 August, 2013

GameLog closed on: Friday 23 August, 2013

dkirschner's opinion and rating for this game

Slick interface and menu screen...Let's see how much I suck at it. --------- A lot, apparently. Too long tug-of-war sessions. I got real bored against the AI and don't want to compete against people because I don't want to spend the time to learn.